TLC ¤ AFTER CHRONICLES ¤ The Rucksack Spirit
by ArkNorth
Summary: The spirit of a beloved Pikachu backpack seeks out its former owner after it wears out ¤ From THE LUGIA CHRONICLES story arc ¤ A Story for Anne Ruecroft


Originally Published in Spring 2000, and on FFN 03/23/03 - Original FFF #1280315

The following is based on a posting made by Blue-Jackal (Anne Ruecroft) over on the AFTeR (alt.fans. Newgroup...

In an article by Sailor Blue-Jackal and her adopted Chimp Pacito wrote:

_I've had one of those Pikachu rucksack (backpack for us State Side folks) thingys for absolutely months, I'm guessing about a year now since I picked it up in Forbidden Planet... He goes everywhere with me here because I keep my CD's in him and my personal CD player. He used to go to college with me, he went to uni..._

_But just as I was about to get off the ferry yesterday, I picked him up and his strap broke :(_

_He's had several rips and tears because I simply always put far too much stuff in there, but sadly, this one has proven fatal :(_

_My Pikachu rucksack is now dead :( _

* * *

**A F T E R ¤ C H R O N I C L E S**

**The Rucksack Spirit**

**By R. A. Stott**

Based on _The Lugia Chronicles_ by Anne Ruecroft and R. A. Stott

I look up.

The ceiling is white.

The room is white.

The bed I'm in is white.

The place SMELLS white.

Yuck.

"Ah, you're awake!" a kindly voice says near me. I look over and see a Joy, slightly older than the ones I see constantly on the tiny TV my BJ sits me in front of...

My BJ...

Where's my BJ?

"My, you're a plump little Pikachu, aren't you?" the older Joy says to me, and pinches my nose.

"OW!"

Did I just say ow?

"Well, at least your vocabulary skills are coming up... say Pikachu Pies are Perfectly Posh!"

"Why in the world would I want to say that?"

"Ah, perfect! You've completely made the change! Welcome, my friend. Welcome to the Stratus League!"

Ah... the Stratus League... I remember my BJ stuffing some papers inside me that mentioned something about this place... So where... where... hey... HEY!

"HEY!"

"What?" the Joy asked, startled by my yell.

"Where's my ZIPPER!?"

"You don't HAVE a zipper anymore, Mr. Pikachu..."

"Don't have a zipper? DON'T HAVE A ZIPPER!?"

"Now now, calm down... calm down..."

"But... but you don't understand! How am I gonna put CDs inside me? How am I suppose to carry BJ's player? - How come I sound like I have Tom Hanks' voice?"

"Please, Mr. Pikachu! You don't have to DO that anymore!"

"But... I... I don't?"

"No... not anymore..."

"But... I'm not going to ride the ferry anymore? I'm not going to school anymore? Hang out with Starscream and Dinobot anymore? Listen to music from my insides when BJ accidentally turns on the CD while the headphones are still inside me?"

"No... Now is a time for rest... You've earned it."

"Rest... yes... rest... maybe this all a dream... when I wake up, BJ and I will be on the boat again for Southampton... right..."

The Joy rubbed her hand across my head. "I'm sorry, Mr. Pikachu, but no... you're on the Stratus because you've moved on..."

Moved on?

I've frayed my thread?

Busted my seams?

Torn my strap?

"NOOOOO!!"

I jump out of bed... I've... never walked before... humm, this is gonna be tricky... How does that other Pikachu on the TV do it? Ah yes...

I stumble out of bed, and roll out the door. The Joy has fallen over the bed attempting to grab me, and is now helplessly tangled in the bed sheets!

I manage to gain control of these silly looking feet! Are these flippers or automatic tripping devices!? It never hurt THIS much when I slammed nose first into the floor! My polyfill would simply cushion the fall protecting all the valuables I had inside me!

I switch to all fours... less chance at nose damage, though there is a slightly greater chance of...

Ow... that door in the face really hurt...

"What are YOU doing here?" I hear from above me.

"Mr. President! Mr. President!" I now hear coming from the Joy I left behind... oh, that was bad...

"Stop him, Mr. President! He's trying to escape!"

I scamper as fast as my feet will take me, running between the legs of the falling President... talk about a lame duck!

Light! I see light! Maybe it will take me to my BJ! I burst through the doorway and I see... concrete... a series of long concrete ramps with strange looking buildings on them... NO! One of the buildings is lifting off the ground! THOSE ARE SHIPS! Maybe THEY can take me back to my BJ!

I run out of the building I was in and head for one of the ships.

"Attention... attention... be on the lookout for a rogue spirit of a rucksack now in the form of a Pikachu... be warned, it is cute, and possibly huggable. Do not, repeat, do not attempt to subdue with bare hands..."

I wondered why they need gloves?

"Electric shock, dummy!"

Ah... can I do that? ZZZAPP! Ow! I guess I can! Who said that?

"There he is!"

"Gett'im! He's making for the ships!"

I've got to get to the ship that's lifting off! I've just got to!

I then find I'm no longer getting closer to the ship. It's not that anyone has me, it's because the blast of wind from the lifting engines is blowing me back! I start to bounce across the concrete towards the other ship, but as I'm bounding, I see a hole in the ground. Large square holes!

"He's heading for the blast relief holes! Gett'im before he falls through!"

It's too late, I fall through. I tumble and twist. I spin. I do the Hokey Pokey.

I fall into the clouds.

I fall THROUGH the clouds! I see... I see the GROUND! I see the ground from a rather great height! I see an amazing vista of rolling farmlands, snowcapped mountains, and snaking highways running off into the distance...

I also see that either we're about to have a serious accident, or these people are driving on the wrong side of the road! Seeing that everyone seems to be united on which side of the road they're driving on, I decide that I'm not in the UK anymore.

I've got to find BJ! WHOA!

As soon as that thought crosses my mind, I suddenly find myself flying east. From the flags I occasionally see as we pass, I assume that I'm leaving the US as a shoreline passes below me. I am now crossing a vast ocean as fast as my little yellow body can fly.

A few hours later, and a quick snooze, I look up and see a familiar shoreline. Right over Wight. It is getting dark. I coast up a familiar lane, and dash over that lime green Ford Capri again. Up till now, it hasn't occurred to me that I've been FLYING all this time... I bet THAT would save on boat fares!

I approach the door to home... Ah home... ah... shoot... how am I suppose to get in? I cross my arms and attempt to lean against the door, when I fall THROUGH it. Well, that was handy!

"BJ!? BJ!? WHERE ARE YOU!?" I shout. I enter our bedroom and check out Starscream and the others gathered in the corner as always. Great, the gang's all here!

Then I see it... A Pikachu... tattered and worn, an impossible to repair torn strap laying beside it. It's my old body... my tired old body...

I look around the room. It's much later than I thought. BJ's asleep. She's spread all over the mattress, as usual (pity the poor toy that gets caught on BJ's bed when she sleeps). I watch my mistress as she rolls about. Sigh... this is wrong. I can't be dead... We have so much more to do together, you and me, kid. I want to graduate from college with you... my BJ... aw my BJ...

I curl up and sleep on the pillow next to my BJ. Surprisingly, she calms down, and we have a restful night.

The next morning, I awaken to see BJ dashing out the door, school books in her hand, and some sort of small pouch device to hold the CDs and her player. It's NOT ME!

"Nope, its not gonna be you anymore either..."

I look over at the voice. It's another Pikachu.

"So this is it... we're all gonna die..." I say.

"Hey, don't look at me... we're dead already!" the other Pikachu says while scratching its ear.

I sigh. He's right. My time had come. I looked over the torn and battered body. One side is being held up by one of the army of Dinobots.

"The good thing about being a rucksack," the toy dinosaur robot said, "is that you're dead weight all the time!"

I shake him off. The tail is tattered - the remaining straps are a patchwork of threaded string. I've definitely looked better in my time.

"Well, maybe you're better off back on the Stratus."

I look at the other Pikachu. "You were sent to find me, weren't you?"

He shrugged. "Hey, better me than a stranger, right?"

"I guess... what about my BJ?"

"She'll get by. She always does."

Sigh... he's right. It's time to go... I just wish I had a chance to...

BJ burst back into the room. She's forgotten something.

Can she see me? She's looking around for something. Then she grabs my old body and looks inside. I miss my zipper.

Ah.. her headphones... the CD Player doesn't work very well without them... she wraps them around her neck and goes to put my body down. But before she does, she gives it a hug... wait a minute... don't hug that... I'm over here now... ah shoot. She's put it down.

And with that, BJ was back out the door. Sigh... I'm gonna miss that girl...

"Hey... don't sweat it," the other Pikachu said, slapping me on the back. "Besides, you never wore shoes anyway!"

"Shoes? What's shoes got to do with anything anyway?"

The Pikachu slapped me on the back again. "'Just means you've got no sole, son - 'Got no soul!"

"Chuuuu!" I shocked that sorry excuse of a spirit all the way back up to the Stratus.

Be seeing you, BJ.

oOo

©2000, 2005, 07 R. A. Stott/The Lugia Project/DMS

Edited 0501.30, 0706.29


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